Frustrated with your commute? You’re not alone.

Vancouver is Canada’s most congested city, according to a recent traffic index from mapping titan TomTom, with residents delayed an average of 87 hours a year on their 30-minute commutes. Toronto placed a close second, with the average commuter losing 83 hours in limbo each year.

We have a problem.

On Oct. 29, U of T Engineering’s keynote speaker series, BizSkule, will feature a panel of industry experts to discuss solutions that will redefine urban travel in the coming decades. The network-friendly event titled The 3rd Urban Revolution – Re-thinking the Future of Transportation, will be moderated by Professor Eric Miller (CivE), transportation expert and director at the University of Toronto Transportation Research Institute.

U of T Engineering’s Jamie Hunter sat down with Miller to discuss the future of travel and the technology that’s going to bring change.

Why is it important that we’re having a discussion about the future of urban travel now?

As anybody living in Toronto knows, we are faced with huge challenges. And a lot of that has to do with the fact that we haven’t built enough transit or taken the problem seriously enough. But it also reflects that the city is growing, we’re under huge pressures and the conditions of travel are changing. We have to respond to that. You might argue that the traditional approaches haven’t served us as well or at least we haven’t made as good a use out of them as we can.

Another reason is that technology—information technology in particular—is changing the possibilities for travel and even the definitions of how we supply transportation services. The smartphone, even though it’s a communications device, is revolutionizing transportation. We can get real-time information at our fingertips that can be used to make informed, rational decisions about the best way to get from here to there. But that’s just the starting point. These apps create all new business models for the transportation industry.

And on top of all that we have autonomous connected vehicles—cars that’ll drive themselves and talk to each other—coming down the pipe. There not here yet, but they are going to be.

In the BizSkule event description, it mentions that “complete mobility” services will redefine urban travel. Can you expand on that?

Mobility is a challenging word because people tend to think of it as mobile communications with your smartphone and apps. For transportation people, mobility means moving from place to place. “Complete mobility” integrates both of these. You have a smart transportation system, which is as much an information communications system as a physical movement of people and goods system—a marriage of the two.

By “mobility” we are talking about moving people, but thinking about it in a more holistic way, where you might drive your car someplace, leave it, take transit, pick up a car share, drive it back to where you parked your car in the first place and drive home again. The mixing and matching of modes and services is, potentially, quite interesting. So the “complete” really refers to getting you through your day in a very holistic way and taking advantage of communications and different transportation services and reconfiguring those services as needed.

What do you hope that people take away from the BizSkule event on October 29^th?

A sense of excitement about the field and a sense that there are opportunities out there as a student, a professional or an investor.

With the current [municipal] election campaign, we’re so bogged down with news about transit investments and how to pay for it and congestion on the roads—and those are all very important and useful discussions that I’ve spent a lot of time involved in—but I think it’s very easy to feel depressed about transportation and that there is no hope. But there really are opportunities for us to fundamentally change things.

It is a brave, new world out there for us—hopefully in a good way. But we have to grab it, we have to jump on it, we have to be innovative. It’s a message for Toronto, Ontario and Canada—if we’re not doing it, somebody else will. We’re not the only ones who have discovered complete mobility. It’s a market opportunity, it’s an academic opportunity, and we have to grab it.

BizSkule Presents: The 3rd Urban Revolution – Re-thinking the Future of Transportation

Date: Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2014
Time: 6:00-8:30 p.m.
Location: Bennett Jones, 1 First Canadian Place, Suite 3400
Cost: $30

View participant bios and register for this event.

In vitro fertilization is a costly, invasive process—but what if there was a way to vastly improve a woman’s chances of getting pregnant in fewer in vitro sessions?

Enter QSperm, a startup grounded in U of T Engineering-developed research from Professor David Sinton (MIE), PhD student Reza Nosrati (MechE PhD 1T6) and alumna Lise Eamer (MechE 0T8, MASc 1T3).

“QSperm is a one-step, inexpensive and easy-to-use device that selects the best sperm for assisted reproduction,” said Eamer. “It races the sperm against each other in a sort of miniature obstacle course in order to select the highest quality sperm to improve the success rates of assisted reproduction.”

Eamer is a researcher at the Sinton Lab where the science behind QSperm got its start. She says the current success rate for assisted reproduction in Canada is only 24 per cent.

“By selecting the highest quality sperm, we aim to improve the success rates and reduce the number of fertilization cycles that couples require to conceive. This will help reduce both the financial and emotional burden of trying to conceive,” she explained.

Last spring, U of T News profiled QSperm as the team competed in the finals of an international life-sciences-based startup competition called OneStart. (Read the original article here) 

With the competition again opening its call for applicants, Eamer looks back at the lessons QSperm learned in last year’s edition. And she talks about the entrepreneurship support her company continues to receive at U of T to help QSperm develop as a business.

How did taking part in an international competition help you develop your entrepreneurship skills?

The OneStart competition had many components which really helped in honing my business skills. The bootcamp in San Francisco was a great opportunity to learn about what makes companies attractive to investors, and how to sell them on your idea.

We also had breakout discussion groups based on our type of technology which made it possible to discuss the challenges specific to our businesses. In our case, there was a lot of discussion surrounding regulatory approval which is definitely something we must understand.

What I liked most about the bootcamp was the speed networking. The organizers set up a speed networking session with serial entrepreneurs, startup CEOs and investment directors. It was a great opportunity to make key contacts that will help us in moving forward. Working closely with a mentor was an invaluable experience which I strongly recommend to all entrepreneurs.

Why did you apply to OneStart?

First, it is geared specifically to startups in the healthcare industry, so it is a great opportunity for medical device companies and therapeutics.

Second, OneStart paired us with a mentor. Our mentor helped us develop a strong business plan and presentation which helped us get into the finals. Although the competition wrapped up in May we are continuing to work with our mentor to engage angel investors and potential partners.

What’s happened with your startup since we last spoke—any major milestones?

We have made some design changes to better meet user needs. We’ve also established some key partnerships that will make it possible for us to move to the next stage of commercialization.

How has U of T continued to support your startup?

Its technology was developed in the Sinton Lab in the department of mechanical and industrial engineering. I would like to acknowledge those that continue to work with me on this project, Professor David Sinton, Dr. Marion Vollmer (MIE) and Reza Nosrati. We have also received unbridled support from the University of Toronto Innovations and Partnerships Office, as well as MaRS Innovation.

What’s next for your company?

In the next year we are working on finalizing the design and conducting the final validation testing. We are of course continuing to develop our network of contacts and mentors in order to continue to hone our business and entrepreneurial skills.

Any advice for aspiring entrepreneurs at U of T?

To aspiring entrepreneurs at U of T, I would strongly recommend making use of the large variety of resources available to budding entrepreneurs at the university as well as through MaRS and the Ontario Network of Entrepreneurs.

It is also of utmost importance to find strong mentors. We have learned a lot from our continued work with various mentors, and they have served as one of the best resources. You should work on continuously growing your network since you never know where you will find someone who can help you advance your business idea.

If you visit the lighting section of your nearest hardware store, chances are you’ll be bombarded by the latest mega-efficient LED bulbs—but to alumnus Michael Helander (EngSci 0T7, MSE PhD 1T2), that technology is old news.

Helander and a team of former U of T Engineering students recently released the world’s first organic LED (or OLED) lamp, aerelight™. The product harnesses the power of next-generation OLEDs to emit a warm light from a thin sheet of non-toxic, carbon-based materials.

The lamp uses less energy than traditional sources, providing up to 1,000 lux of illumination—double a typical office environment—with only seven watts. It also features a dimming capability, wireless smartphone charging built into the base, and of course, an advanced OLED panel. (Read more about aerelight.)

OLEDs are a sophisticated type of light-emitting diodes that pass electricity through carbon-based dyes and pigments to power lights and displays. While we’ve seen this technology in certain high-end smartphones and premium flat-panel displays, this is the first consumer-ready indoor OLED lighting product ever made.

“We started with a goal of building the aerelight desk lamp, first as a great product, and second as the first consumer-ready OLED lamp,” said Helander, who co-founded OTI Lumionics to commercialize OLEDs in 2011. The startup manufactures the lamps in-house, and is scheduled to ship them to consumers in early 2015.

“With traditional light sources, the bulb is a distinct separate entity from the fixture,” said alumnus and OTI senior product designer Ray Kwa (EngSci 0T0 + PEY). “With aerelight, I wanted to create a seamless, continuous frame integrating the base, frame and light—synonymous to the OLED light source itself which emits a diffused, fluid soft light.”

Although the lamp’s efficiency and sleek design are already making media headlines, aerelight is actually part of a much greater strategy from OTI to make OLED technology cheaper and easier to manufacture.

“OLEDs have many unique characteristics that make [them] the ideal light source of the future, but potential growth has been stifled by the high manufacturing costs,” said Helander.

In 2011, then-PhD students Helander and Zhibin Wang (MSE PhD 1T2), along with their supervisor Professor Zheng-Hong Lu (MSE), discovered a new method for cost-effective production of OLEDs. Published in the leading journal, Science, the trio used a single-atom-thick layer of chlorine that simplified the internal structure of OLED technology, while still achieving high brightness and efficiency.

Shortly after the breakthrough, Helander and other Engineering alumni spun off the technology into OTI—taking their ideas to  U of T’s elite accelerator program in the Creative Destruction Lab, based at the Rotman School of Management. Over eight months, they honed the necessary technical and business aspects of their company, while also meeting with Canadian business and entrepreneurship titans.

The fledgling startup has already received significant interest from notable investors, including Lee Lau, ATI Technologies founder and a G7 fellow at U of T’s Creative Destruction Lab, and Roger Martin, former Rotman School of Business dean.

“This is a great example of how new materials like OLEDs can be showcased in a product that represents a paradigm shift in indoor lighting and sustainable technologies,” said Professor Jun Nogami, chair of the U of T Department of Materials Science & Engineering.

With their first product hitting desks soon, Helander and his team at OTI continue to make OLED technology more accessible than ever—suggesting a bright future is in store for them as well.

See aerelight for yourself:

http://youtu.be/1s0o1xkJo20

As Torontonians get ready to head to the polls on October 27, issues that have been driving public debate and city politics over the past year are heating up.

Over the next four weeks, U of T News—reposted on Engineering News—will feature a mini-series of podcasts introducing experts from engineering, geography, architecture and more as they explain their boundary-breaking research with the aim of providing voters—and anyone interested in the future of cities—with a snapshot of what Toronto and other global cities could look like just a few years from now.

The first episode is all about traffic. You can download or stream the full episode here:

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/170330981″ params=”color=00cc11&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

 

(Click the down-pointing arrow button in the player to download episode and transfer to your listening device)

Part One: Smarter traffic lights

In the first part of this episode, post-doctoral researcher Samah El-Tantawy (CivE) explains her work with Professor Baher Abdulhai (CivE) as they develop a system known as MARLIN-ATSC (Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning for Integrated Network of Adaptive Traffic Signal Controllers).

The name sounds complicated but it’s really a simple idea: making traffic lights artifically intelligent.

She says traffic simulations have shown that MARLIN can reduce traffic wait times by 40 per cent—and it’s just about to be tested on the roads of Burlington.

Last year, El-Tantawy was featured in U of T News for winning an international award for her work on MARLIN.

Part Two: A new kind of ride on Toronto streets

Engineering alumnus Phil Lam (EngSci 0T9, MIE PhD 1T5) and his team at Wheelspan want to make travel on Toronto roads greener, safer and more efficient.

Their innovative human-electric hybrid vehicle and their company are both in development at the Impact Centre, one of U of T’s entrepreneurship hubs specifically designed for entrepreneurs focused on the physical sciences.

Lam explains the urban needs driving the mission of Wheelspan.

Part Three: Putting the politics of traffic into students’ hands

Professor Zack Taylor teaches urban issues and local government at University of Toronto’s Scarborough campus.

He’s interested in political questions and behaviour at a local scale –and he’s inviting his students to join him in his work.

This semester, Taylor is leading a fourth-year seminar course all about the Toronto election.

In this episode, he explains why he’s looking to students to help fill the gaps of scholarship on city elections and what it means for young researchers to dig in.

Read more about building successful cities at U of T. 

This podcast features music made available on the Free Music Archive from artists Cheese N Pot-C, Tha Silent Partner and The Custodian of Records.

When you download photos from your digital camera, it may only seem like a click of a mouse. But to your computer, it’s an intricate process fraught with error. As millions of information bits travel between devices at lightning speed, tiny blips and blunders are common—and fixing those errors is more complex than you’d imagine.

ECE Professor Frank Kschischang is a pioneer in developing new coding systems that correct these errors—and his innovative work recently garnered him the role of University of Toronto Distinguished Professor in Digital Communication.

Granted by the office of the vice-president and provost for the University of Toronto, he will hold the position for a five-year term, effective January 1, 2015. The Distinguished Professor Awards are designed to advance and recognize individuals with highly distinguished accomplishments, who maintain an extraordinary level of activity in their research and scholarly work and have achieved pre-eminence in their fields.

Professor Kschischang has made seminal contributions in the area of error-correcting techniques, and his methods have been applied in wired and wireless systems, as well as optical networks. In the late 1990s, he co-invented the factor graph, a type of graphical model that implements an efficient probabilistic-inference algorithm for application in error-control coding, signal processing and DNA sequencing. Now a standard tool used throughout machine learning and digital communications, the factor graph has also been implemented in many industrial standards.

His award-winning work on subspace codes for network coding provided an elegant solution to the problem of error-control in communication systems. Using random linear network coding, it introduces a radically new approach to communications in networks like the internet. His research on optical communications has been equally groundbreaking, attracting attention from leading theoreticians and industrial practitioners. His published papers are influential and highly cited, and he has won several best paper awards.

Kschischang has received many awards and honours in recognition of his pioneering research contributions. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the Engineering Institute of Canada and the Royal Society of Canada, and garnered a Killam Research Fellowship in 2010. He is a recipient of the Canadian Award in Telecommunications Research, given biennially to a top Canadian researcher in this area. A member of the first cohort of Canada Research Chairs at the University of Toronto, he was awarded the CRC in Communication Algorithms in 2001. Highly regarded by his peers, Kschischang was elected president of the IEEE Information Theory Society in 2010. He currently serves as editor-in-chief of IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, the most prestigious journal in his field.

In addition to his research accomplishments, Kschischang is one of the Faculty’s most accomplished and popular teachers. An excellent lecturer who receives outstanding teaching evaluations, he has also contributed to curriculum development. He was a key architect of the “flexible curriculum” and served for several years as chair of the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering’s Curriculum Committee. He has received six departmental teaching awards over the years, as well as the Faculty Teaching Award. His remarkable record of teaching and research was recognized in 2010 with the University of Toronto Faculty Award.

With files from Carolyn Farrell and Marit Mitchell.